SAT II subject tests and IB

I'm taking SAT II math: level 1 in June, and some unis recommend 3 subject tests, some for placement some for admission (Harvard, Georgetown, etc.) , so is it really

worth taking 3 subject tests in addition to IB, or 1 + high grades (IB) will suffice? I'm confused! should I take 2 more with IB? IF I were take them which are the easiest to get 800 in? (forget eng lit or any other lang!)

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

I'm taking SAT II math: level 1 in June, and some unis recommend 3 subject tests, some for placement some for admission (Harvard, Georgetown, etc.) , so is it really

worth taking 3 subject tests in addition to IB, or 1 + high grades (IB) will suffice? I'm confused! should I take 2 more with IB? IF I were take them which are the easiest to get 800 in? (forget eng lit or any other lang!)

ThanQ,,

The weird thing about the Uni's in the states is that they don't really factor in the IB really well into their admissions process (from what I've gathered). I'm not sure what the deal is for other Uni's, but I'm going for an engineering college where they want a science, a math, and any other subject. The SAT scores come out before your IB scores so it's a more definite display of your knowledge for the colleges to look at. There's a different process in Europe, although you'd have to ask someone else for specifics. So yea, I took 3 subject tests, Spanish, Chemistry, and Math 2. The easiest ones are the language ones (not english) and possibly math 1 although there are higher scores for math 2 for some reason... Just go with what you know best, and try the practice questions online to see if you know the material being tested.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

i don't know which subject test are the easiest but i suggest that you take the three.if it is what the uni recomends then i would do it. if you are using them as placement exams and you know that you will score well on them, take them. a lot of US unis will not look at IB as a big factor in getting in to their uni.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

IMO take Italian even though you are Italian as forester said it will shows you're TRIlingual. I wish I was trilingual . I'm just taking math level 1, I can't take any sciences cuz I suck in them . And forget eng lit!!!

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

i personally found math2 way easier than math1 for some reason. there is just too much chance that due to time-constraints you will make a silly error in math 1 (lots of computational problems) and the scaling is harder

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

wow wth. Why did u guys find math 2 easier? like just more content but easier style questions? i was gonna take math 1 because it looked easier but i didnt really look at any of the practise questions. can everyone verify the following statement lol?

math 2 more content but easier questions wise

math 2 less content but harder questions wise

vrai?

o.o confused canadian here lmao

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Several things you guys should know about the SATII maths. One, the reason why Math 2 seems easier is for two factors: only people who are good take it so scores are bound to be good, and two, the material is more new. What happens with these exams is that the math rarely goes past algebra 2, maybe some trig. This means that math 2 itself does not involve any hard calculus so its regularly easy. The problem with Math 1 is that it covers less material, which is bad because it leaves A LOT OF ROOM for those really hard logic questions that even if you're smart in math you can easily get confused. In a nutshell, if you are good in math you'll always do better in math 2, if you're ok in math you'll probably do better in math 2, if you're bad in math you'll probably not take the SAT subject test for math so it doesn't matter...

Math is the only subject that has two levels (except for Bio but thats different) of difficulty and the simple reason is so that English majors can feel comfortable about taking an easier test. Both tests are practically the same!

So technically bescherelle was right about both statements, but the reason why ten times the number of people score 800 in math 2 instead of math 1 is not because its harder...it's because they allow more errors (scores may vary depending on the national average, they vary A LOT):

a friend took math 2 and left 10 questions blank. Assuming he got all of the others right, which he might've, he still got a 780. Another friend took math 1 and left 1 answer blank and got 1 wrong and got a 770.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

i wouldn't say that i regret it. i think it helped in a lot of ways, but it is harder to get college credit wiht IB that it is with AP.

I definietly think that skills gained in IB is in some ways greater than AP and that there is a bit more responsibility on the part of the IB student than just taking tests. (CAS, EE, IAs) Yet, some of my friends are resorting to taking both AP and IB tests along with subject tests to try to ensure that they get college credit. (Even though the AP and IB testing period overlap)

I just really wished that the US universities start putting a little bit more weight on IB and realize all the effort that we have to put into just staying in the program.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

Well when is the right time to take the SAT II in IB 1 or 2 and what semester?? I am taking bio chem and math2 so when is a good time to take them also when is a good time to take the SAT I ?? ( good time meaning get higest scores?)

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

It's quite weird, as October is apparently the worst time to do SAT 1, and yet I received my highest score then. So I do not think the time of the testing session matters.

If you are taking the sciences I would suggest doing it in IB2, as some of the materials you might not have covered. However in IB2 there are many assignments due and EE and TOK and university applications, so it's basically a trade-off and you have to get the balance just right.

Maths2 you can do anytime, it's not very hard eg. none of the hard HL stuff.

I did my SAT1 in May 2008 (end of IB1) and October 2008 (Towards the beginning of IB2)

I did my 3 SAT2 subjects tests all in one session (November 2008), which I would recommend against as you get so tired in the third test. Normally I finish maths2 in 30min, however since it was the third test I did, I finished in exactly one hour and did not have time to check. (Ended up getting maybe 3 wrong, however it is still 800)

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

I felt like the SAT I was more about critical thinking and reasoning skills than having actual subject knowledge. My highest score came from my junior year (IB 1) just because I was not as busy as I was this year.

However, you should take SAT II's in IB 2 because those tests ARE based off of subject knowledge yet, surprisingly I received my higest scores in my junior year.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

I think that good IB grades are not enough, especially if you are looking to go to the states for university as universities in the states don't recognize IB as much as AP or SAT scores. So, taking SAT tests can only help you get admission. IF you do not do well in your SAT scores, you can decide not to send them, or take the SAT again. Its generally better to do the SATs if you want to go to the states as it is one of the primary factors that the admissions officers look at along with G.P.A and the rigor of the courses you take.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

I'm planning on taking the English Lit, World History and Physics SAT2s in the fall. I was told, however, that English Lit and World History are incredibly hard and I should opt for something like French instead. Is this true? I've studied French for 7 years, but I still suck at it, so I'm not altogether sure if it's the best decision. What about Math 1? Can an SL Math student pull it off?

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

I'm planning on taking the English Lit, World History and Physics SAT2s in the fall. I was told, however, that English Lit and World History are incredibly hard and I should opt for something like French instead. Is this true? I've studied French for 7 years, but I still suck at it, so I'm not altogether sure if it's the best decision. What about Math 1? Can an SL Math student pull it off?

I'm not quite sure about English Lit but I've heard that World History is really hard as well.

Like everyone has said, take Math 2 if you're not bad at math. I'm pretty sure a SL student can pull off Math 2... at least that's what I'm going to do.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

I'm taking the SAT II physics but in June but I don't have any books for references. Is SAT II physics test hard? What topics does it cover?

The structure is different. It's different from the IB exam, the SATI's, the AP (if you recognize its structure). I took AP Physics B/IB Physics SL this year, and I'm taking Math2, Chem, and Physics in June. I suggest you look through the site below and do the practice tests they provide; it should answer all of your questions. My teacher never followed the IB syllabus for physics, but we got lucky (with the exception of the engery topic.. 8 I think?) because the AP and IB tests covered almost the same things. The SATII test won't require as much revision as the IB test, so that's a plus. However, some of the IB HL stuff is on the SATII test. I don't think that SL people do EM Induction or even magnetism at all. If you haven't covered these topics, then you should know that it's hard--for me, anyways--to learn them on your own.

Share this post

Link to post

Share on other sites

I'm taking the SAT II physics but in June but I don't have any books for references. Is SAT II physics test hard? What topics does it cover?

The structure is different. It's different from the IB exam, the SATI's, the AP (if you recognize its structure). I took AP Physics B/IB Physics SL this year, and I'm taking Math2, Chem, and Physics in June. I suggest you look through the site below and do the practice tests they provide; it should answer all of your questions. My teacher never followed the IB syllabus for physics, but we got lucky (with the exception of the engery topic.. 8 I think?) because the AP and IB tests covered almost the same things. The SATII test won't require as much revision as the IB test, so that's a plus. However, some of the IB HL stuff is on the SATII test. I don't think that SL people do EM Induction or even magnetism at all. If you haven't covered these topics, then you should know that it's hard--for me, anyways--to learn them on your own.

Oh my goodness, THANK YOU so so much! You have officially saved my life, I guess I love sparknotes now:D and you! Wow they sure cover a lot of topics. I'm taking math2 and physics in June too, but I have less than 3 weeks to prepare, and my final exams are next week...the SAT II tests are on the saturday following my IB final exams. Joy. My teacher has not covered optics and mordern physics with us yet, hope they're not too hard

one more question, are they going to provide any physics formulae? or are we supposed to know them all?I just have this feeling that I'm going to forget some of the formulae(eeek)